Az Lawdogs

Like for many other dog breeds with an unwritten history, the American Bulldogs exact origin is a matter of conjecture. As far as the American Bulldog's origins are concerned the three dominant theories are the following: 

According to the first one, the American Bulldog was brought over to America by the colonists, where they were primarily used as farm guards, stock dogs gathering cattle and as pack dogs to hunt or tree bears.  It is, according to this theory, the "original" English Bulldog which has survived unchanged in remote rural communities, just as it was when it was still a working breed rather than the present day English Bulldog.

According to the second theory, the American Bulldog is a made-up breed concocted from a mixture of other breeds. The third one consists of a combination of theories (1) and (2). Basically, the original English Bulldog was an ancestor of today American Bulldog but he has been much modified through the years by selective breeding and judicious out crosses. We should remember at this point that many of the Bull Breeds we know today are ultimately descended from the original English Bulldog: this includes Bullmastiffs, Staffordshires, English Bull Terriers and American Pit Bull Terriers among others. All of these were selectively bred to create very different dogs, each suited to his individual purpose.

The advocates of the first theory believe the American Bulldog is the pure embodiment of the original English Bulldog as it looked when the early settlers from the British Isles and Europe came to America in the 17th and 18th centuries. This idea was popularized by a couple of breeders, probably as a marketing ploy to sell their dogs. Others have eagerly swallowed the story, enabling its passage from myth to modern legend to widely-perceived truth. Records do exist which show that many bulldogs and bull terriers were exported to America and many contemporary British paintings and sculptures show bulldogs which look similar to American Bulldogs, and many people point to these as evidence to support this belief. 

The white coloring predominant in today American Bulldogs was also the base color of most of the English Bulldog of that time, which could suggest a very strong link.

However, it seems highly unlikely that the original English bulldog could possibly have survived unchanged in America for hundreds of years; through the generations he would have been interbred and shaped by his environment and the needs of his masters. This theory does have a certain romantic attraction to it however, so it is easy to understand its continuing popularity. The advocates of the second theory believe the American Bulldog was created from a blend of various types of dog, which of course is true for every breed. More important is to know what exactly where the foundation dogs of these breeding programs, hence, the third theory option.

The third theory, and the probably the one closest to the truth, is that the American Bulldog is descended from a selectively-bred blend of bulldogs and Bull Terriers Immigrants from the British Isles, Spain and Northern Europe brought their prized bulldogs and bull terriers with them on their voyage to the New World, where they would certainly have proved their worth in many ways. The dogs provided welcome protection in a sometimes hostile land and also were invaluable to the livestock farmer whose cattle and pigs roamed unfenced over wide areas; this made the livestock hard for the farmer to catch when required, and so the "catch dog" came into being. The selective breeding that had created a dog with the strength, tenacity, courage and longing to seize a bull at a baiting or engage in some other form of animal combat now made him the free-range livestock farmer's best friend. In his new role the bulldog could seize a cow or pig and hold him firm until his handlers joined him to tie or slaughter the animal. In addition those same abilities made him a most formidable tool for hunting wild game, a scenario the American Bulldog continues to excel in today in parts of the United States. His major role however was as a general watchdog and companion more than anything else, which continues to be the breeds forte.

Pedigrees or other records were not kept; these were not show dogs so there was no need. Natural selection governed the development of the bulldog in America in those times, and as working dogs in a harsh world, poor performing dogs either died in action or would be culled by their owners. Breedings would be decided purely on a dog's abilities: If you had a good bitch and wanted a litter and you knew someone who had a good proven dog then a tie might be arranged to create another generation of working bulldogs, some of which may have been sold to provide a little extra cash in those tough times.

Many breeding experiments would undoubtedly have been tried over the many decades that have elapsed since those first bulldogs and bull terriers landed in America, some successful and some probably less so. For example, some hound blood was likely crossed in to help enhance the breed's hunting/tracking/baying abilities. Higher proportions of terrier blood would have added tenacity and quickness to some strains too. An extra dose of modern "sour-mug" English Bulldog blood has apparently been added by at least one well known breeder in fairly recent history to increase the bulliness of his lines.  A couple of mystery ingredients have probably been added too at some points back in the past. This old recipe probably holds true for all lines/types of American Bulldog with only the proportions of ingredients varying. However the American Bulldog is now certainly far enough away from its "root-breeds" to unquestionably be regarded a true breed in its own right, and a fine and versatile one  too.

The American Bulldog is a powerful, athletic, medium to large sized dog with great muscular strength and endless endurance.  There  is a wide size and weight latitude in the breed, which vary according to the type Johnson, Scott, Painter/Margentina, Old Southern Whites type or hybrid but overall the American Bulldog is always well balanced.  Exaggeration of any part of the dog would reduce his effectiveness at work.

It was first registered in 1970 as an American Pit Bulldog with the NKC but later renamed to the American Bulldog to avoid confusion with the American Pit Bull Terrier.  The principal architects of the modern American Bulldog are Allen Scott and John D. Johnson.  Before they renamed the breed to American Bulldog the dogs were known by a variety of different regional names: Southern White - Hill Bulldog Country Bulldog - White Bulldog - White English Bulldog - English White and commonly Bulldog.  As well as having varying names according to region and they also had local bloodline variations in appearance and size and also differences according to the tasks intended of them by their breeders and this is part of the reason why the American Bulldog breed conformation standards laid down by the registries allow for such a wide variation in type. 

Initially Scott Johnson had similar dogs and they freely bred and trade dogs with each other.  Johnsons Dick the Bruiser and Scotts Mac the Masher were their foundation dogs.  These two dogs were Old Southern Whites.  Alan Scott and John D. Johnson scoured the mountains and valleys of those Southern states looking for Bulldogs and buying up those that they liked and they began a breeding program together.  Later on they had a falling out and JDJ began to develop and refine his trademark heavier-built style of American Bulldog.  From the breeding programs of these two men, two distinct strains have emerged, commonly called the Johnson type or the Bully/Classic class and the Scott type or Standard/Performance class. The main registries have subdivide the breed standard in to these two distinct phenotypes, but these distinct types having diverged and having been diluted it is now more appropriate to talk about five types of American Bulldogs.

When talking about the American Bulldog blood lines, the first two that comes to ones mind are the Johnson or classic type and the Scott or performance type. However, after several generations of American Bulldogs these two original types have been diluted and it is now probably more accurate to consider five main types, bearing in mind that most American Bulldogs today are hybrids of two or more of these types, apart those originating from certain kennels who continue to this day to breed true to type, either Johnson or Scott.

1. The Johnson or Classic Type:

The Johnson type (or bully type) resembles an athletic, tightly built, white Bullmastiff.  As compared to the Scott type it is a larger; wider dog with more bone; pendulous lips; and undershot jaw; facial wrinkles and a shorter muzzle. In the 70s John D. Johnson bred two of his American Bulldog females (King's Lady Grace and Johnson's Sugar Doll) to an English Bulldog West Champ's High Hopes. This created Johnson's Sugar Doll 3 and Bullmeads Queen who were both half English Bulldog.  The famous Johnson American Bulldog Johnson's Incredible Mean Machine was 30% English Bulldog and foundation stock for most Johnson American Bulldogs today. This has made the Johnson type American Bulldog  somewhat less athletic and more bully in appearance.  Weight for males can be 121 lbs. plus.  Mr. Johnson  branched away from the American Bulldog in 1998 to create the JDJ bulldog, which is a very tall dog with a Standard type body and a Bully head. Some claim this is now to be considered a different breed registered with John D. Johnson. This makes the standard type American Bulldog very agile and structurally sound.  They have a very strong prey drive and can be dog aggressive which is exactly what American Bulldogs needed 300 years ago to protect the farm from wolves and coyotes and to do catch work.

2. The Standard / Performance/ Scott Type:

The Scott type looks like a large; coarse; leggy; white Pit Bull. They are lighter weight than the Johnson type and have a very muscular athletic look and their front legs are under their body not thrown out to the sides.  This makes the standard type American Bulldog very agile and structurally sound.  They have a very strong prey drive and can be dog aggressive which is exactly what American Bulldogs needed 300 years ago to protect the farm from wolves and coyotes, and to do catch work.  The Scott type American Bulldog has a closer under bite and longer muzzle too.  Weighing generally from 60 to 100 lbs.  Well-known lines include Scott - Hines- Kerscher - Koura - Stover and Williamson among others.

3. The Painter/Margentina Type:

In the late 1970s Joe Painter - Margentina -  Tappe and others developed a second performance strain of American Bulldogs that was unfortunately used in the dog fighting arena. They are of an even smaller size, 55 to 77 lbs.   This American Bulldog line came from using inbred Johnsons Dick the Bruiser females that were small between 45 to 70 lbs. They were bred to Larry Wrights Rounder and Alan Scotts Big Bucks. The Rounder dog came from G.L. Williamsons Big Joe and Tucks Tiger Lady who was 50% Mac the Masher. It is widely rumored that Margentina and Trap infused Pit Bull Terrier blood into the pure Joe Painter line. This was probably due to the color in these dogs.  However some of the dogs Joe Painter already had that color in them. A couple of their more famous dogs were Painters Zeke and Margentinas Sergeant Rock. The Painter/Margentina strain was heavily inbred and had some problems, though through judicious out crosses, the Painter strain has made valuable contributions to the breed as a whole.

4. The "Old Southern White" Type:

One can still find dogs referred to as White English among countrymen that never have heard about Mr. Scott or Mr. Johnson.  This is a term for the original country bulldogs that are not descended from any of the modern lines i.e. breeds strains with no infusion of blood from the common American Bulldog lines. The reverse is in fact the truth; that is to say Old Southern Whites were the raw material that Scott - JDJ and others started out with when they got their foundation dogs. Southern Whites are still used by country folk in the Deep South, some of whom have probably never heard of Mr. Scott or Mr. Johnson or the term American Bulldog.  Often their families have bred these White English for generations and these are the dogs that some claim should be named The true American Bulldogs. A few breeders still use pure Southern White lines in their breeding programs and they can be a useful source of fresh genetic material for established bloodlines.

5. The "Hybrid" Type:

These are basically American Bulldogs whose blood-lines are a mixture of standard and bully types with the goal being to distill the best features of both. Today most American bulldogs are probably in this category. Some notable successful breeders of hybrid lines include Kyle Symmes (Sure-Grip), Matt Boyd and Greg Souza among many others.